In his outward persona at least, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came to this country to lessen hostility toward himself and to defend Iran, not to rabble-rouse and provoke hatred. Whether he succeeded remains an open question.

Central Asia seems to have entered a new period ocooperation. Regional leaders are making official visits to neighboring states at a rate not seen since the early days after the fall of the Soviet Union. What’s driving this new dynamic?

Although NATO commanders in Afghanistan say Taliban insurgents are on the run, there are signs that the resolve of key ISAF nations is flagging in the face of a task that could take decades and has already cost the lives of many soldiers.

Pakistan and Uzbekistan signed on 21 September a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at increasing and intensifying defense cooperation, Xinhua reported quoting the News Network International (NNI).

Iraq‘s Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has agreed to look into political demands of the main Sunni Arab political bloc which pulled out of his Shi’ite-led government last month, his office said.

    Turkey’s devout Muslim prime minister said Wednesday that the constitution should be changed to remove a ban at universities on head scarves, the most potent symbol of the national divide over the role of religion in politics.     

 ISLAMABAD — Now that President Pervez Musharraf has reaffirmed intention to step down as army chief after eight years, the identity of his replacement at the helm of the powerful nuclear-armed army is leaving every body guessing. “Loyalty will possibly be the key factor but General Musharraf may spring a …

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is urging Iran to comply with Security Council resolutions regarding its nuclear activities, after France‘s foreign minister warned that the world should prepare for war if negotiations fail.

Russia and China expressed alarm on Tuesday over comments by France’s foreign minister that Paris should prepare for the prospect of war with Iran, which the West accuses of secretly developing nuclear weapons.

  Hundreds of Palestinians thronged two major West Bank checkpoints, trying to reach a key Islamic shrine in Jerusalem on the first Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, despite tight Israeli restrictions.